


A theological dilemma

by AvandraTheMarySueSlayer



Category: Baldur's Gate
Genre: Gen, Mentions of other characters - Freeform, Three priestesses arguing and a half-divine dwarf with a headache, mentioned character deaths
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-14
Updated: 2019-12-14
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:08:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21784963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvandraTheMarySueSlayer/pseuds/AvandraTheMarySueSlayer
Summary: Alberich of Candlekeep has reached the end of his long journey and now stands, beside his friends Aerie and Branwen, to face Amelyssan the Blackhearted. However, she has a surprising revelation for him in store...
Comments: 4
Kudos: 6
Collections: Yuletide 2019





	A theological dilemma

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LateToTheParty](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LateToTheParty/gifts).



> Dear LateToTheParty, I loved your Baldur's Gate prompts the moment I saw them. I hope this short story is up to your expectatives and that you enjoy it. The rest of you, dear readers, too! I hope it brings a smile to your faces.

* * *

In the last few years, many had been the trials that Alberich of Candlekeep had been forced to endure, and many the losses. First, his foster father Gorion at the hands of the dwarf's sadistic half-brother, Sarevok. With the help of his trusted friend and half-sister Imoen, Alberich picked himself up and seeked Gorion's friends, Khalid and Jaheira, for counsel. He accepted to aid in their investigations of the Iron Crisis, and it was by that time when the defender began to think the Fates were toying with him.  _ Then _ , when he found out the extent of Sarevok's involvement with the crisis and that two of his companions' sworn enemy, Tazok, was his right hand man. Both Branwen and Kivan had reasons to see the ogre dead, so when the final battle against them came, they both fought him viciously. Branwen only stopped to heal Alberich after he received a life-threatening blow from Sarevok that he could not fend off even with the defensive combat stances he had trained on for years and years. Kivan only stopped after receiving a mortal wound from Tazok, but not before taking his enemy with him, immolating them both with an arrow of detonation.

But Alberich had no time to mourn his fallen friend, as the mad mage Irenicus sought the opportunity to whisk him and his companions away, for the purpose of experimentation. By then, the cursed elf was the only one aware of Imoen's nature as a Bhaalspawn, and so he killed and maimed Khalid before her very eyes, hoping to awaken her divine power. He would have done the same to Branwen and Jaheira, hadn't the timely intervention of Athkatla's Shadow Thieves given them a chance to escape. Then began a wild goose chase, first to rescue Imoen, who had been held prisoner along with Irenicus, and then to stop the mage's plans and restore Alberich's stolen soul. Though he lost Jaheira to a curse an old enemy of hers laid on her, he was by no means alone. Aside from his old friend Branwen and then Imoen, he met new allies in the Amnish city; Aerie, a wingless avariel, competent in arcane and divine magic; Anomen, a warrior priest of Helm; and Jan, an illusionist and thief with all sorts of ingenious trinkets. Together, they fell Irenicus and saved the elven city of Suldanesselar.

Alas, the Fates were capricious and did not grant Alberich or his companions the break they well deserved. The dwarf was dragged into the Bhaalspawn War, instigated by the Five, allegedly the most powerful of his divine siblings. This war cost him even more than Sarevok and Irenicus combined, as most of his allies and friends died on its course. Jan was the first, crushed by the fire giant Yaga-Shura during the battle in Saradush. Then, Anomen fell victim to Sendai's deadly forces, but not before he finished casting the false dawn spell that weakened and blinded them, allowing Alberich and the remainder of his companions to defeat them. And then, when the time came to face Abazigal, Imoen was lost to his foul breath when he turned into his dragon form. 

In the end, only Aerie and Branwen had survived the endless fights, and now they stood by his side at the Throne of Bhaal, ready to face Amelyssan, the queen of that twisted chess board. And that was the moment when Alberich understood that the Fates were not just capricious, but madder than Cyric, and wore Amelyssan's face. There was not a hint of the hatred, bloodlust and madness he had expected on that face, but rather, an ear to ear grin of… happiness?

"My sweet boy!" She exclaimed, clasping her hands in wonder. "Look how far you have come, look at all the Bhaal essence I gathered just for you!"

Alberich blinked. Aerie and Branwen fell in stunned silence, their eyes wide as saucers.

"Come again?" The dwarven Bhaalspawn asked in utter confusion.

"Sorry I kept this from you, but I had to make sure you became strong enough to withhold the transformation," Amelyssan kept gushing, taking a few confident steps in the group's direction. 

Alberich and Branwen drew their warhammers while Aerie prepared an offensive spell, but the Deathbringer seemed unfazed by their hostility.

"You have grown so strong! Alianna would have been so proud," she cooed as if the glaring dwarf were a newborn.

"Ah, yes, she would, except she tried to sacrifice me to your god, she told me herself!" Alberich exploded in fury. "Do not attempt to lie to me, madwoman!"

"I am not lying," Amelyssan replied with a sweet smile. "She has omitted some information due to an oath she swore to me."

"I was not aware Bhaalites kept oaths," Branwen spat in response. "If your dishonor is so great that you would slay helpless newborns in the name of your mad god, how could you ever be trusted?"

"On the contrary, to become a sacrifice to Bhaal is the greatest of all honors one of our faith could gift," the high priestess replied, still calm as if she weren't being threatened by weapons and magic both.

"Stop playing pretend, Amelyssan, the solar told us about your plan," Alberich cut her off. "You don't have the slightest intention of reviving Bhaal; you want his essence all for yourself!"

It was Amelyssan's time to be confused. She furrowed her brow and tilted her head.

"But I just told you, haven't I? All this essence is yours, I have no need for it. But you are right about one thing…" her tender smile became a scowl that sent a shiver down her foes' spines. "I betrayed Bhaal, but only because he betrayed  _ me  _ first."

"Well… what did you expect from an  _ evil  _ god, anyway?" Aerie quipped in, her hands on her hips, still glowing with arcane energy. "To serve any purpose other than his own? To actually care about his followers?"

"You do not understand what you speak of, child," Amelyssan glowered at the elf. "I was Bhaal's most trusted servant, and so when he predicted his own death, it was me he chose for the most important of all tasks; to reunite his essence and keep track of it at this throne of his, so that when all of it was gathered, I could begin the resurrection rites. However, I did not expect he would leave _me_ ; his mortal eyes, ears and mouth, childless. To ensure I was fully devoted to my role, he left me barren! I had to watch as the other priestesses received his gift, while I was left with nothing but these pools of divine essence to watch over!"

"So… you want revenge on him because he wouldn't allow you to give birth to a child that you would eventually have to sacrifice to him anyway?" Alberich drawled, convinced that the woman was even madder than he had thought.

"He took that choice from me!" She shouted in rage. "But then Alianna, bless her soul, came to me. She had been my best friend for many years, and she felt sorry for my predicament. So together, we devised a plan… perhaps I would never give birth, but I could ensure you, her son, had access to all of your siblings’ essence after it was collected and you were the only one left. In order to ensure you had the best odds, Alianna seduced that Harper from Candlekeep, Gorion, so he would eventually learn about her involvement with Bhaal and her pregnancy, and he would 'rescue' you. After all, what better place for a Bhaalspawn to grow than the great library founded by Alaundo, where all his prophecies about the Bhaalspawn War were kept?"

At that point, Alberich began to feel the first painful pangs of a headache. He wanted to rub his temples, but they were covered by his helmet, so instead, he balled his hands into fists, feeling his sanity slip from him.

"You forced a man to kill the woman he loved so her child ended in his care?" Branwen gasped, scandalized by the extent of Amelyssan's indignity.

"Yes," she replied without the slightest hint of shame.

"And started a war that took thousands of lives to ensure Alberich became the last living Bhaalspawn?" Aerie added, horrified by the woman's villainy.

"I'll admit it was a leap of faith, but for sweet Alberich? I took it gladly," the Bhaalite replied, her motherly smile back in place.

"I have to be honest and confess I see no wrong in starting a war for the sake of a son," Branwen muttered, twisting Tempus' holy symbol in her hands, like a visual justification of her belief.

Aerie turned to her companion, aghast.

"I must confess, I never understood your god and his command for bloodshed!"

Branwen glared at the elf.

"And I never understood how you can devote your worship to  _ two _ deities at the same time," she retorted. "What would you do if their dogmas clashed?"

"Can we  _ please  _ leave this theological debate for some other time?" Alberich interrupted the women's argument before it escalated. If he had learned anything for travelling with the two of them –and Anomen, before his tragic demise–, was that holy people  _ loved  _ to argue about whose god was the best. Meanwhile, he still had questions about Amelyssan's revelations.

"Tell me one thing," he addressed the high priestess. "Were you behind Gorion's death too? Was Sarevok another of your goons?"

"A pawn's pawn," she shrugged. "You see, I had selected those Bhaalspawn who had a significant amount of their father's essence in them, in order to be later trained by myself. I had hoped that defeating them all would make you even stronger. Those were the Five, and Sarevok was meant to be the sixth… alas, he escaped when the Harpers raided our temple, so I had to improvise. I told Winski Perorate, our best scryer, to find him and teach him the ways of the Deathbringer, as I 'thought he was the one’. And you defeated him, like all the rest! I'm so glad you didn't lend him any of your essence so he could resurrect; you needed all of it in order to ascend."

"And my sister, Imoen?"

"Awww, I'm so sorry, sweetie," Amelyssan replied as she would do a kid who wanted one more cookie than it was due. "She had Bhaal's essence, too, so it was imperative that she died as well. I hope you understand."

"Understand what? That you are a cold-blooded murderer?" Aerie shouted, done with all that madness.

"Being a murderer is the main point of worshipping the god of murder, dearie," Amelyssan replied with a mocking grin.

"Well, she does have a point," Branwen added, much to the avariel's chagrin. "But all this scheming… you have played not only with Alberich's life, but with the lives of all those around him! 'Tis unforgivable! Alberich, I say we have talked enough!"

"Yes, Alberich, come and claim what's rightfully yours," Amelyssan beckoned the Bhaalspawn, affection evident in her features.

"I…"

All of the information he had just acquired was enough to give him a killer migraine. All his life had been a plot of his mother and Amelyssan to get him to the Throne of Bhaal. All of his choices, the sacrifices he made, the losses he endured… Everything was meant to lead him to where he was. He had been tricked in the foulest way, but his fate was still his to decide.

And he chose…

"Yes…  _ mother _ . Lead me on, and I shall claim my heritage. But you must swear your allegiance to me first, right now."

Amelyssan could have died of sheer joy in the moment she heard the word "mother". She guided the man she considered her son to the pools of divine energy from which he was to draw the essence of Bhaal. Aerie and Branwen barely had time to exchange horrified glances.

"Alberich, no!"

"Don't do this! You will betray the memory of all those who fought and died for you!"

Amelyssan began her chant. Alberich's eyes began to glow in the same shade of gold as the pools, and he smiled at his friends.

"On the contrary. By doing this, I shall honor them."

His whole body began to shine like a star, and his feet lifted from the ground as Bhaal's essence seeped into him. Then he spoke, and his voice resonated in the whole room, in the women's minds, inside every living and every dead creature, in the whole world.

**_"I shall become the god of murder, but not one like my father. I shall alleviate the pain of all victims of murder and judge their killers. Amelyssan, you shall embrace my new dogma if you wish to serve me, or I shall strip you off your power and send those of a righteous heart to put an end to your misdeeds, and your life. I shall be the one leading the blade of those who kill because they are forced to; in order to survive, to protect, to deliver justice when no other solution is viable."_ **

Suddenly, his voice returned to normal, for his next words were only for the women at his throne to hear.

"And while we're at it, the people who died for my sake shouldn't have to die at all, so I shall bring them back to life. Amelyssan, you wish to be a mother? Then Imoen shall be your daughter, with no taint of Bhaal. She will keep you in check, too."

"Wha—" the high priestess stammered.

Now Alberich shone so bright that it was impossible to look him in the eye.

"As for you, my friends," he now addressed Aerie and Branwen, "know that you will have my blessing for life, so you cannot die of murder. Just… stop arguing about religion and accept each other's faiths, you give me headaches every time."

"Uh… Alberich?" Aerie started, a bit unsure. "Not that I'm not grateful for your blessing, but since we technically aren't your worshippers, I don't think you can give us orders… right?"

"Just do it, dammit!" Were Alberich's last words before he completed his ascension and disappeared from the mortal plane, leaving three very shocked priestesses behind.

**Author's Note:**

> When I first read LateToTheParty's prompt, I immediately noticed one thing Amelyssan, Branwen and Aerie have in common; they're priestesses. With so many different gods, arguments about their dogmas are bound to happen, and so this piece came into place. I sincerely hope you enjoyed it. Don't hesitate to leave your comments on it, reading your thoughts makes my day <3
> 
> Happy Yuletide!


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